


To Build a Home

by orphan_account



Series: DC Imagines [8]
Category: DCU (Comics), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Song fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-30
Updated: 2019-03-30
Packaged: 2019-12-26 13:42:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18283451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Wally and Artemis mourn.





	To Build a Home

_There is a house built out of stone. Wooden floors, wall, and windowsills. Tables and chair worn by all of the dust. This is a place where I don’t feel alone. This is a place where I feel at home._

The West home was in ruins. The curtains were drawn, take-out was scattered throughout, and beer cans littered the floor. Artemis was passed out on the couch with Brucely snuggled up against her. Wally, however, was in the room at the back of the house. The room that had been deadbolted by the both of them, the key thrown in the garbage can, already collected and gone forever. Lucky for Wally, his super speed allowed to him to phase through the door. If one would consider this scene lucky.

Murals of sunflowers, night skies, and an uncompleted forest scene covered the walls. Paint cans were sitting beside the wall, cracked and dry from sitting out without being covered. The bed was unmade, bottles of water sitting on a nightstand beside it. Polaroids were strung from a string connected by the bed posts. Wally sighed as he grabbed a photo, running his thumb over it to remove some of the dust. It was from the day that the family had moved to the new house.

The picture showed Artemis holding a 7-year old, helping her paint sunflowers against the wall. A few tears dropped to the cold, wooden floor as Wally grasped onto the photo tighter.  He couldn’t believe his little girl was gone.

_And I built a home, for you, for me. And now, it’s time to leave and turn to dust._

**“(Y/N)! DON’T DO ANYTHING RECKLESS!”**

**“DAD, I THINK THAT’S IN MY GENES. BESIDES, HOW IS IT RECKLESS IF I’M SAVING THE WORLD?” THE YOUNG SPEEDSTER’S VOICE ECHOED OVER THE COMMS, HER VOICE BREAKING IN NERVOUSNESS.  
**

**WALLY RAN. HE RAN FASTER THAN HE BELIEVED HE COULD. AND YET, HE DIDN’T MAKE IT IN TIME. ALL HE COULD DO IS WATCH AS HIS DAUGHTER THREW HERSELF AT A WEAKENED LOBO, SENDING THEM BOTH FLYING OFF THE CLIFF’S EDGE. M’GANN JUMPED OFF AFTER THEM, ONLY TO FLY BACK UP TEN MINUTES LATER WITH A LOOK OF HEARTBREAK WRITTEN OVER HER FACE AND A FLOATING LOBO BESIDE HER.**

**SHE WAS GONE.**

_Out in the garden where we planted the seeds, there is a tree as old as me. Branches were sewn by the color of green, grass had arose and passed it knees._

Artemis had woken up, and knowing where Wally was broke her heart. She couldn’t even stand to be in that room after.. after what had happened. She wiped a stray tear from her face and beckoned Brucely to follow her outside. A rusty swingset and a muddy sand box were reminders of what her life had become.  _Broken_. 

The only thing enjoyable about the home anymore was the happiness from the sunflower garden in the backyard, sitting right next to an old oak tree. (Y/N), Wally, and Artemis had planted the sunflowers a year after they had moved in. (Y/N) had demanded that they had to have some wildlife living in their yard, and sunflowers were her favorite thing after all.

And after they had spent an entire summer gardening, they finally started to bloom. (Y/N) always begged to climb the tree to reach the top of the sunflowers, and always made her parents climb with her. Artemis began to climb the tree, wishing her daughter was above her, yelling down to her mother excitedly.

_By the cracks of the skin I had climbed to the top. I climbed the tree to see the world. When the gusts came around to blow me down, held on as tightly as you held onto me… held on as tightly as you held onto me._

From the room at the back of the house, Wally saw his wife climbing the old oak tree. He folded the picture and stuffed it into his jacket pocket as he made his way to her. He followed her up to the middle of the tree, just above where the sunflowers would stop growing. As they both sat on a sturdy branch, legs hanging, they held onto each other. 

“I can’t live without her, Wally.”

“I know. Neither can I.” He sucked in a deep breath. “But she needs us to. She would want us to.”

A crack of thunder was heard in the distance, lightning shooting down close to their vicinity. Wisps of blue began to invade their vision, and they climbed down the tree to see what it was. 

A ghostly outline of their daughter stood in front of them, the sunflower garden towering over her just slightly. Your smile graced your face, leaving them shell-shocked. Your parents held hands as they walked to you, shaking in sadness. 

You held out both of your hands, color slowly coming to you as the blue light began to grow more dim. Wet tears slid down your cheeks as you let loose a broken sob. As Wally and Artemis grabbed your hands, the blue light disappeared with a snap, and you flew forward. 

The best and worst thing about being a speedster is the Speedforce. It’s the source of your power, and yet, it can be the source of your doom.

“I was so scared.” Arms surrounded you, pulling you closer to your parents. All that was heard was the sound of relieved crying.

_And I built a home, for you, for me._

The sunflowers loomed over your family as you became whole again. 

They really were your favorite thing.


End file.
